Broncos defense cant be overlooked

Tuesday

Dec 13, 2011 at 12:01 AM

For a few brief paragraphs, forget about Tim Tebow. Forget the last-minute comebacks, forget the drastic splits between performance in the first three quarters and performance in the fourth, forget the 7-1 record thatís coincided with his placement i

By TIM BRITTON | | Journal Sports Writer

For a few brief paragraphs, forget about Tim Tebow. Forget thelast-minute comebacks, forget the drastic splits betweenperformance in the first three quarters and performance in thefourth, forget the 7-1 record that's coincided with his placementin the starting lineup.

Concentrate instead on what's allowed all that to happen: theDenver Broncos' defense.

Denver's rejuvenation over the last eight games has a lot moreto do with a defense realizing its potential than with aquarterback's relationship to religion. After all, what you do inthe fourth quarter usually doesn't matter when you don't score atall in the first three.

The Broncos' defense, however, has kept Denver in games even asTebow and his offense has limped through the first three quartersof action. Just look at last week, when the Broncos remained in thegame despite being shut out for the first 57 minutes. Denver'sdefense stifled the Bears - albeit a Chicago offense playing withCaleb Hanie at quarterback - in allowing just 274 yards of totaloffense.

Like the offense, the Broncos defense performed at its best inthe final period, forcing four consecutive three-and-outs andallowing 18 yards on 16 Chicago plays in the fourth quarter. Forthe day, the Bears were 2-for-15 on third down. And when theBroncos needed it most, Wesley Woodyard stripped Marion Barber IIIfor the game's critical turnover in overtime.

It was indicative of the way the entire Denver team has raisedits game of late. Over the course of the team's six-game winningstreak, the defense has allowed an average of 17 points per game.The Broncos were allowing more than 28 per contest before then.

What's responsible for the improvement? First is the developmentof rookie linebacker Von Miller. Miller, the second pick in thedraft out of Texas A&M, has become a seemingly ubiquitouspresence on defense. He has at least a half-sack in each of thelast five games, with 6.5 in that span. His 11.5 sacks lead all NFLrookies and place him seventh overall in the league. He's three shyfrom tying Jevon Kearse's rookie record for sacks.

"Von has done a heck of a job this year," said Patriots directorof player personnel Nick Caserio, who added that he scouted Millera bit before the draft. "He's had a lot of production. They have alot of playmakers on the defensive side of the ball."

If you want to know how important Miller is to the Denverdefense, just look at the one game he missed, when the Broncosallowed 32 points to the Vikings in Week 13.

Miller is helped by playing alongside defensive end ElvisDumervil, the NFL's leader in sacks in 2009. After missing all oflast season, Dumervil too has rounded into form as the year hasprogressed. He has at least a half-sack in each game of Denver'scurrent winning streak, after having none through the season'sfirst seven weeks.

"Both those guys, Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil, those guys areexplosive guys that have different rush techniques, good speed,"offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien said. "It's a fast defenseoverall. We're going to have to do a good job, especially early inthe game of getting used to the speed of the game as it relatesdefinitely to those two guys and then the rest of the defense, too.It's a real challenge, especially on the road with the crowd noiseand all those different things that will go into the gameplan."

"They certainly pose as good a threat as anybody off the edge,"said Caserio.

Of Denver's 37 sacks on the season, 19 have come in the last sixgames. Football Outsiders ranks the Broncos' pass rush asfifth-best in the league in adjusted sack rate (which accounts forthe number of pass attempts a defense faces).

Speed is the name of the game throughout the Denver defense.Even in his 13th season, cornerback Champ Bailey remains one of theleague's best.

"There's no question about it. He basically covers the otherteam's best receiver every week," said O'Brien of Bailey. "I wouldsay he's definitely in the upper echelon of players. He's in his13th year, and I don't see any dropoff with that guy."

On Sunday, Tebow may have a chance to notch another purportedlate-game miracle on his belt. If he does, though, it will have anawful lot to do with the Denver defense giving him the chance.

tbritton@providencejournal.com

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